KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) and the Association of Malaysian Spas (Amspa) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to put Malaysia’s wellness tourism on par with popular wellness destinations globally.
During the ceremony Matta president, Datuk Tan Kok Liang said that the MoU encompasses arrangements related to promotional programmes and activities leading towards Visit Malaysia 2020 and will result in the exchange of information, cooperation in capacity building as well as development in the area of ‘wellness tourism’.
“This initiative is expected to unleash the full potential of this emerging sector in Malaysia and make it on par with other popular wellness destinations in Asia such as Bali, Indonesia, Thailand and other prime wellness destinations in Europe.
“These strategic areas of cooperation are timely as we are supporting the Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign in bringing in 30 million international tourists and RM100 billion tourist receipts to the country,“ said Tan.
Apart from the signing, Matta and Amspa also collaborated in a networking session, which was attended by over 100 participants, consisting of tour and travel agencies, and spa operators under one roof at the Concorde Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.
Tan said the collaboration with Amspa would create favourable conditions for members as participants explore opportunities in wellness tourism and products available locally.
“The potential of wellness tourism is immense and with the backing of Tourism Malaysia and tour operators’ promotional activities, we can generate more awareness on the different types of wellness packages that our country can offer to travellers.”
